Criminal

Chapter Five

                                                                                 **Claire**

I unpacked my bags slowly in his room, placing my clothes in the drawers Harry cleared for me when we got back to his apartment. We'd compromised--I got drawer space and part of the closet, but he got to take the bed. The only words I spoke to him were the ones where I insisted that he let me sleep on the couch.

I grabbed my shower things, making my way to the hallway bathroom and setting them on the ledge of his giant walk-in shower. It was a little unsettling to see the openness of the shower space, a giant mirror right across from it. I blushed just thinking about what need Harry must have for a mirror while he showers. No, stop that, I told myself, stop thinking of Harry in his shower. 

I walked back out of the bathroom to see Harry leaning against the counter on his phone. His voice was low and his eyes slowly came up to meet mine, giving me a questioning glance. "Where are your towels?" I asked him quietly, feeling myself shutting him out. "Hall closet, across from the bathroom." He said, and I nodded, turning my back and stalking down the dark hall. Right before I shut the door to the bathroom I heard him snap, "No, you fuck, stop talking about her like that." 

I ignored the giant mirror as I turned the water on, stripping out of my clothes and leaving them on the expanse of dark granite counter. I stepped behind the wall of stone in the bathroom, shutting off the shower space from the rest of the room. I closed my eyes, feeling my muscles relax under the stream of hot water as I shampooed my hair. 'It's okay', I told myself, 'this will all blow over soon'. 

 I jumped when there was a large banging noise on the bathroom door. Without waiting for an answer, Harry just shouted through the wood. "Claire?" He called, and I rinsed my hair, stepping out of the stream of water. "Yes?" I yelled back, my voice hoarse from the sobbing that took place earlier. "I just wanted to let you know that in a few minutes some guys I work with are going to be coming over." He said, and my heart started racing. I took a moment to reply. "Okay." I said, and was answered with the thud of his boots on the floor. 

I shut the water off and toweled dry, then dressed in the clothes I'd come in. I wrapped my hair in the towel and exited the steamy bathroom, noticing that Harry wasn't anywhere to be found. The door to the side of the living room was shut, but there was light in the crack between it and the floor. I stood there helplessly for a moment until I turned on my heel and headed back to the bedroom that wasn't mine. 

                                                                                  ************

Lunchtime rolled around and passed, and there were still loud voices carrying throughout the apartment from the living room. Harry's 'collegues' had gotten here around eleven, and now it was two and it didn't seem that they would be leaving any time soon. I was starting to get hungry enough to eat a horse, so I finally shut my book--one that was in tact and that I had also read a million times--climbed off the bed, and made my way to the kitchen. 

When I approached the end of the hallway and the living room full of men came into view, my presence didn't go unnoticed. A fairly handsome brunette with crystal blue eyes was the first to see me, and a cheshire grin spead across his cheeks as he rose from his spot next to another handsome guy. "Well, tell me, Haz, is this bird the Claire you've been keeping hidden away?" He asked, a mischevious glint in his eye. 

I was frozen to the spot, and now everyone was looking at me. Harry whipped around in his seat, eyes wide, but the guy had already made his way over to me, slinging an arm across my shoulder. "I believe that introductions are in order. I'm Louis." He said, his arm tightening around my shoulder.